What Exactly Do You Own?

Properties, bank accounts, Premium Bonds, life policies, pensions, these are all very easy to identify. But on your death, your Executors will need to account to HM Revenue & Customs for values of everything you own, whether or not your estate is subject to Inheritance Tax. It is possible in this day and age that you will also have ‘digital assets’, this could simply be online bank accounts, but may also include Bitcoins, credits held with gaming companies or website domain names that you own that have a value. Your Executors will need to value all of these assets in order to comply with their legal duties.

Your family may also wish to deal with your social media accounts. Unless you have set these up in a certain way, it is possible that they will become inactive after your death and stores of photographs for example would be lost forever. It is important to leave your Executors some guidance. This can be done by leaving a list of all your digital assets. This can be stored by your solicitor with your Will, so it will remain confidential until your death. A local organisation, Social Embers (www.socialembers.co.uk), can also give you guidance. They can provide a very useful ‘Digital Legacy Toolkit’ for a small fee which helps you put your assets in order and guides you through what happens with your social media accounts after your death.